A Flame in the Darkness
by Bayleef
Summary: Sequel to Freedom of the Phoenix A new evil has befallen the world and it's up to Ash, Rick and some old friends to save the world from the poweful forces that threaten to distroy the world. Say Hello to chappy 7!
1. Darkness Over The Land

** Chapter One - Darkness Over The Land**

** Right in the centre of Johto, there is a mountain known as Phoenix Mountain. It is a dangerous mountain and most that climb it come back with no memory of what they did when they reached to the top. This caused people to believe that there was an evil power up there, and so many people were too afraid to climb it.**

But what really happened up there was Ho-oh, the legendary Pokémon, believed to be extinct by almost everyone and lived up in a cave at the very top of the mountain, would wipe their memory so they wouldn't remember seeing it.

A few months ago, however, Ho-oh had met the only humans it really trusted. Rick and Ash Ketchum. Rick was the greatest Pokémon Master in the World and always helped keep the legendary Pokémon safe and secret. His son, Ash, was the only human that shared a Pokémon's power, Ho-oh's power.

Presently, Ash was on vacation with his Pokémon on Seafoam Island and Rick was competing in the Pokémon Champions League to protect his title as the world's greatest Pokémon Master.

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A large whirlpool began to appear in the sea near the Whirl Islands. Whirlpools were normal here in the Whirl Islands, but this one was about as big as the Pokémon League battlefield and the water in it was a pitch-black colour. 

From the centre of it, five large orbs floated into the air. The sky clouded over with storm clouds and lighting struck, but there was no rain. The orbs began to swell up. After a little while they all exploded, causing more lightning to strike. When the blindly light disappeared, five figures were flying in the air. It was a Lugia, a Moltres, a Zapdos, an Articuno and a Ho-oh, but they were different. They all had black feathers and glowing red eyes. Zapdos let out a shot of black electricity, Moltres used a red flamethrower, Lugia used a red Aeroblast, Articuno used a black Ice Beam and Ho-oh shot out and Ho-oh used a black and red flamethrower. The Ho-oh let out a cry and flew up into the sky, followed by the others. It began to speak to them, when they reached the area above the clouds, and they all grinned evilly. The Pokémon all faced the sky above them and shot their attacks. The attacks combined and turned into a huge black beam and shot up and up into the sky. 

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Just then, the regular Ho-oh awoke from it's slumber in Phoenix Mountain. It narrowed its eyes and walked to the entrance of its cave. When it reached there it peered around. Even though it was hundreds of miles away, it could see black beam shooting into the sky. _"So they have returned"_

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Pikachu, Cyndaquil, Totodile, Bulbasaur, Noctowl and Bayleef played on the beach at Seafoam Island. Because of the Pokémon Champions League, the beeches were very empty, which gave them plenty of room to play tag, build sand castles, go for a swim, race each other or just relax. 

There was a Pokémon Center right by the beach and while the Pokémon played, Ash was on the phone talking to Rick.

"So how'd it go?" Ash asked.

"I protected my title" Rick said, grinning. "How are you and your Pokémon doing?"

"We're all fine, though I think they're getting lazy" Ash said. "I'm gonna start training again next week if...." He stopped in mid-sentence as he looked outside the window beside him.

"Ash? What is it?" Rick asked concerned.

Ash looked back at the videophone. "Look outside" He saw the large black blast of power was shooting up into the sky.

Rick looked outside and saw what Ash was talking about. "Whatta you think it is?"

"No idea" Ash opened the window and looked out. He looked at the beach and saw Pikachu was the nearest. "Pikachu!"

Pikachu had also been looking out to sea at the black beam. He twitched his ears and looked back at Ash.

"Round up the others and get to the Pokémon Center right now" Ash ordered.

Pikachu nodded and ran off to get the others.

Just then, the sky began to change. It seemed as though the sky was ripping apart in different places, revealing a pitch black, starless, sunless, moonless sky. The land began to fade into total darkness. Just as Pikachu and the others entered the Pokémon Center, the last bit of blue sky disappeared and the land was covered in darkness.

"Dad did you see that?" Ash said. Cyndaquil's flames burst from his back and lit the room.

"How couldn't I?" Rick had taken out his Charizard, whose flame was light the room for him. He left the phone for a second and turned on the lights. He came back to the phone and found that Nurse Joy had just turned on all the lights in the Pokémon Center. "I'll try to get over there as soon as possible, you wait at the Pokémon Center" And with that he hung up.

Ash put the phone down. He turned to his Pokémon and saw the worry in their eyes. "What's wrong?"

Pikachu looked out the window and then back at Ash.

Ash bent down and patted Pikachu on the head. "Don't worry, we'll figure this out. Everything will be ok" 

Pikachu smiled but looked outside worriedly. Being a Pokémon, he could since things humans couldn't, and he could since that the Pokémon behind this were very powerful.

But what Pikachu didn't know, was that Ash could since the power too. He knew it was because of Ho-oh's power that lay within him. Thinking of Ho-oh, he wondered how his friend was doing.

He looked over at the clock on the wall. It was only 4pm.

_"What could be powerful enough to cover the world in darkness?"_ Ash thought as he sat down on a nearby chair. He Pokémon walked over and sat on the floor beside him.

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To Be Continued

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YAY! I HAVE A SEQUEL! Heehee, well there's the first chappy. Hope you didn't fall asleep to many times ^_^;; And it was short! lol, I couldn't decide were to end it so I decided that the first chappy would be on were the characters were and bring in the bad guys! Lol, I promise to try and make the next part WAY better. Well, guess that's all for now,  
Bay Bay!  
Bayleef  
adorable_chickorita@hotmail.com


	2. Unusual Battle

** Chapter Two - Unusual Battle**

** Ash and his Pokémon stayed in the Pokémon Center while they waited for Rick to arrived. Most of them had decided if they couldn't play outside, they'd play inside.**

Pikachu sat silently beside his trainer, watching the other Pokémon play.

Ash stood up and walked over to the window. He looked out to see nothing but darkness. The lights of the Pokémon Center were the only thing in sight at that moment, standing out in the dark land. It was 7pm now. Ash was wondering if it could possibly get darker and would it at nighttime when he saw something in the darkness. It took him a moment to realise that it was Rick and his Charizard. He ran over to the door, Pikachu behind him. He walked out just as Rick returned Charizard. "What kept you?"

"Sorry Ash" Rick clipped the Pokéball to his belt. "Sent an e-mail to Prof. Oak and Prof. Hale, they said they'd look into it"

A Raichu stood at Rick's feet. It walked over and greeted Pikachu happily.

The four entered the Pokémon Center. Ash's other Pokémon had settled down and were now eating some Pokéfood Ash had lain out for them earlier. Pikachu and Raichu joined them, Pikachu's sharing with Raichu.

Ash sat down and watched the Pokémon, silently thinking. He jumped when the Pokémon Center phone rang.

Nurse Joy picked it up. "Hello, Seafoam Island Pokémon Center. How may I help you?" She nodded to the person on the phone and put her hand over the mouthpiece. She looked over at Ash and Rick. "Are you two Ash and Rick?"

"Ya" The two answered in unison.

"There's someone on the phone for you" She said handing the phone to Rick as he walked up and going around back to work on some injured wild Pokémon.

Rick looked at the videophone. "Oh hi Prof. Hale, anything that could help us out?"

"Maybe. I found an old stone tablet that has a strange inscription on it, look, here's a picture" Prof. Hale held up a picture of what looked like a square rock with strange markings on it. He showed another picture that should the back of the tablet. The back had a large black circle at the back, and in the centre, there was a pair of red eyes. Ash shivered when he saw it, but he didn't know why. "I sent Pidgeotto over with it, it should be there soon, but it's strange. It seemed to have just appeared out of nowhere, right after I got your e-mail"

Ash turned to Noctowl. "Noctowl, your a nocturnal Pokémon, fly out and wait until you see a Pidgeotto. It should have something with it"

Noctowl spread its wings and flew towards the Pokémon Center doors, which opened automatically.

Rick had just finished talking to Prof. Hale and hung up the phone.

A few minutes later Noctowl arrived back with a parcel. It flew over and dropped the parcel on Ash's lap, then flew over and perched on the back of a chair.

Ash opened the parcel and inside was a small rectangle shaped stone. It was no bigger than a videotape box and the inscriptions were pretty small.

Rick looked at it over Ash's shoulder. "Come on, let's try to figure this out"

----------- 

Ash yawned and woke up. They had been working right until dawn, though they couldn't tell since the sun wasn't there. He rubbed his eyes and looked up at the clock. It was 1pm. Or was it 1am? Well it was one something which told him that he'd either gotton six hours sleep or eighteen hours sleep. He confused himself trying to figure it out so decided to look at the artefact that Noctowl had brought the night before.... or at least he thought it was the night before.

Rick yawned and got up. "What time is it?"

"Don't ask" Ash said glancing over at him.

Rick shrugged and looked back at the Pokémon. Cyndaquil was fighting with Raichu because it had accidentally shocked him. "Better go sort that out" He stood up and walked over to the Pokémon.

"Ok" Ash sighed. They hadn't been able to translate any of it. So far they'd come up with some of the weirdest things that weren't any help like "For Sale". Maybe it was a "For Sale" sign used long ago. Ash's mind began to wander as he imagined a cave man putting the sign up on a rock. He shook himself and then noticed something on the front.

On the front of the tablet there was a faint red outline of a hand. Ash hesitated for a moment then placed his hand on it. He gasped and closed his eyes. The strange letters on the tablet glowed for a little while and then stopped. When Ash opened his eyes again they were clouded over.

Rick looked back at him. "Hey, you ok Ash?" When he heard no response he walked over and placed his hand on Ash's shoulder. "Hello in there?"

Ash spun around and punch Rick in the arm before jumping back out of his reach.

Rick rubbed his arm. "Ash, what's with you?"

Pikachu walked up beside Rick. "Pika?" He tilted his head and looked at Ash. "Pikapi?" As he looked into Ash's eyes he could tell something wasn't right. His friend was taken over by something, something powerful. Pikachu narrowed his eyes and got down on all fours, cheeks sparking.

Rick looked at Pikachu and understood what was wrong. "You've got to fight it Ash"

Pikachu charged up and shot a thundershock at Ash.

Ash raised his arm in front of him and his eyes glowed red. A barrier formed around him, protecting him from the attack.

Pikachu began to pour on the power but Ash wasn't even fazed, even when Raichu joined in.

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Ash felt as though he had been taken away from reality. All he could see was a pair of red eyes, glaring at him. The owner of the red eyes moved forward and even though it was dark Ash could see, from the glow of the eyes, that it was in the shape of a Lugia.

The Pokémon spoke in Ash's mind, it's voice cold as ice. _"So you are the one Ho-oh has trusted with it's powers? Bad choice. You're not strong enough to break my spell. I have taken control of you and there's nothing you can do"_ Ash glanced around him. Where was he? It was as if he was sitting in darkness.

_"You are trapped inside your own mind. The only way to gain control of it yourself is to defeat me"_ the Lugia said, reading his thoughts.

Ash stood up. How was he to defeat this Lugia without his Pokémon? He looked down at his hand, which was glowing slightly red. That was how he had to beat it. He clenched his hand into a fist and held it up in front of him, eyes shut tight. He raised his fist and punched it forward, a red beam shooting towards the Lugia.

The Lugia was hit, but just winced a little. It grinned and powered up, shooting an Aeroblast of red and black at Ash.

Ash was hit and Lugia's attack was a lot more affective then his. He fell and skidded across the ground, if there was a ground there at all. He stopped and sat up, trying to catch his breath.

_"Do you really think you have a chance against me? I'm not even the real thing, I'm just using my powers to control you. That tablet was a good idea, one of my best"_ Lugia smirked.

Ash pushed himself up and powered up again. "I won't know until I try" He shot another beam, more powerful this time, at Lugia.

This time Lugia was a little more hurt, but he shot another dark Aeroblast at Ash.

Ash was hit again but was somehow able to keep his balance. He began to power up again. This was taking a lot of his energy not to mention Lugia's attacks were draining his power. Now he knew what a Pokémon in battle felt like.

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Pikachu and Raichu were both worn out from using their electricity and were too tired to continue.

Ash grinned, eyes still glowing a bright red colour.

Rick picked up Pikachu and Raichu. "Ash come on, you have to fight whatever's taken a hold of you"

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Ash was blasted back again by another Aeroblast. He pushed himself up weakly and looked at the Lugia. It was burnt in some places and breathing heavily, but it still was able to fight. Ash heard Rick's voice and looked around. He closed his eyes and nodded before turning back to Lugia.

_"So, you still refuse to give up?"_ Lugia began to power up for another Aeroblast.

Ash glared at the Lugia as it shot the attack at him. He quickly countered with another blast, which wasn't powerful enough to hurt Lugia by itself, by it reflected the attack back on Lugia.

Lugia's eyes widened as the attack came shooting at it. When the attack struck, there was a blinding flash and Ash suddenly found himself back to normal.

Unfortunately all the pains from his battle with Lugia hit him all at once and he felt a jolt of electricity as Pikachu and Raichu used Thunderbolt just as the barrier disappeared. "PIKACHU!" Ash called and the electricity instantly stopped. He fell back and groaned.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu ran over to him and jumped into his arms.

"Are you ok? What happened?" Rick helped him over to a bench and sat him down.

Ash began to explain what had happened, wondering at the same time why Lugia would do such a thing. Then he realised something. When there had been a flash when he shot and attack, it showed that the Lugia was all black, not the normal white and blue. He mentioned this to Rick and then looked at the clock. It was 4 something. He'd only been awake three hours and already he was tired. He yawned and rubbed his eyes.

"You get some sleep, you look like your gonna need it" Rick said and stood up. He walked over past the phone and over to the Pokémon.

Ash caught a glimpse of the phone. "Whatever you do, don't call mom" he said. "She'll freak"

"And she'd have my head" Rick said grinning.

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In the Whirl Islands, Red Rock Isle was completely destroyed. In the center stood a large building, a little like a castle. Except it had very dark grey walls, torches lighting the corridors and when you entered it was like a maze. It was built that way to confuse enemies. Right in the center was a huge room. There was a tall perch were a dark Ho-oh was sitting. The five Dark Legendaries had been able to build it in a short amount of time.

Lugia stood in front of it's leader. _"The boy escaped this time Ho-oh, but we'll get him next time"_

_"We better, that boy could be the key to our victory. He has more power then that phoney Ho-oh let him know and if we could get a hold of him, we could claim that power as our own"_ The Dark Ho-oh's red eyes flashed and it's grinned evilly. _"Do anything to get him to us, but I want him alive"_

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To Be Continued

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Well there you have it, chappy two! This one's getting as fun as "Freedom of the Phoenix". Heehee, sorry it took so long to update but with school and all it's kindda hard. *Picks up a Pokéball and throws it. A Ho-oh appears* Let's go destroy the school Ho-oh! *Ho-oh yawns and goes to sleep* Uh...heehee ^_^;; I guess it needs a little more training. Well, see yaz next time,  
Bay Bay!  
Bayleef  
adorable_chickorita@hotmail.com


	3. Hooh's Explanation

** Chapter Three - Ho-oh's Explanation **

Ash looked around him. There was a large dark castle in front of him. He curiously walked up to it. When he walked in he found that it was like a maze. Strangely enough, he was able to find his way around. When he reached the center there was darkness, and then two red eyes appeared.

Ash woke up with a start. He looked around and saw Pikachu sleeping beside him. He smiled and patted the Pokémon, careful not to wake him up. He sat up and looked around. Nurse Joy and Chansey were probably asleep, or treating Pokémon, because they weren't at the front desk. His Pokémon were all asleep and so was Raichu.

He smile faded as he looked out the window again. He sighed and got up, walking over to the window and looking out into the darkness. That was a strange dream. He looked at the windowsill and thought. Maybe he should contact Ho-oh, this was a dangerous situation. He started to concentrate when he saw a huge figure in the sky. He shook his head and took a closer look. It was Ho-oh!

Even in the darkness Ash could see it's rainbow coloured wings surrounded by a strange goldish glow. He smiled and ran towards the Pokémon Center door. He ran out and skidded to a stop at the edge of the beach.

Ho-oh glided down and landed in front of Ash. It bowed it's head. _"Good to see you again Ash"_

"Right back at ya" Ash said as he walked down and patted the giant birds beak. He noticed something glimmer by Ho-oh's talon. "What's that?"

Ho-oh lifted it's talon and showed Ash what it was carrying. It was a sword, one that looked like it was very old, but still very well made and looked had a red jewel on the hilt of it. It held the sword in front of Ash, who took it. _"Your going to need this"_ Ash looked up from the sword at Ho-oh. "What do you mean?"

_"The reason the world is covered in darkness is because the Dark Legendaries have returned. Centuries ago, there was a war, now forgotten by all humans and Pokémon, all except the legendaries. The Dark Legendaries craved power so much they made an attempt to take over the world. But the normal legendaries, myself and the others, banished them to another realm by combining our powers. A portal opened and they were sucked in. When it closed up behind them, this sword was in the portals place. I have discovered that it is the only way to defeat the Dark Legendary leader is if it is slain by this sword. But this sword must be given to the right person. I have reasons to believe that you are that person, but I can't be sure. To get rid of this darkness, the leader has to be defeated, but it's also a Ho-oh. Right now their HQ is at Red Rock Isle"_ Ho-oh jerked it's head up and saw Nurse Joy in the Pokémon Center. _"I better find a hiding spot for now, away from the Pokémon Center. There is a cave up the mountain a little, I'll be up there most of the time"_ And with that Ho-oh spread it's wings and took off.

Ash watched Ho-oh leave and then looked at the sword. He walked into the Pokémon Center and found Pikachu was now awake. He sat beside his friend and placed the sword on his lap. That castle in his dream...it must have been the Dark Legendaries HQ.

Rick walked over to him. "Um, what the heck are you doing with a sword?"

"Ho-oh gave it to me" Ash explained the whole thing about the Dark Legendaries. He looked outside. "I'm gonna tell Ho-oh to call the other Legendary birds"

Rick looked up at him, "Why?"

"Because we attack the castle at Red Rock Isle the next time the clock reaches 12 something" Ash said.

"Red Rock Isle? Castle?" Rick asked.

"Just trust me" Ash said and closed his eyes. _"Ho-oh, call Lugia, Moltres, Zapdos and Articuno, we attack the Dark Legendaries in three hours"_ There was no reply but a few moments later they saw Ho-oh flying quite low to the Pokémon Center and heading towards the Orange Islands.

Nurse Joy came running out. "What was that?!"

"Uh....A Golbat?" Ash said looking at Rick for help.

"A Golbat?" Nurse Joy said.

"Ya" Rick said. "And it was a big one"

Nurse Joy looked from one to the other and shrugged. She yawned and headed around back.

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At around 10pm/am, Ho-oh landed on the beach again, accompanied by a normal Lugia. Ash grabbed the sword and his stuff and ran out, followed by Rick, who was tripping over his untied shoelaces. They knew Nurse Joy was suspicious so they wanted to come and go as fast as they could. Ash jumped onto Ho-oh's back while Rick jumped onto Lugia's. The two Pokémon took off at high speed to get away from the Pokémon Center, both of their riders clinging on for dear life.

After they were high in the air they flew towards the Whirl Islands, Zapdos, Moltres and Articuno joining them as they flew quietly over the sea. They reached Blue Rock Isle and Ho-oh landed. The whole place was deserted since the Dark Legendaries arrived. Ash got off and looked around. The whole place was destroyed, buildings in ruins, land burnt and blasted, leaving nothing but a bare wasteland. Ash looked back and saw Lugia land a little more roughly than Ho-oh, causing Rick to fall off. He shook his head, "Come on, we gotta decide what we're gonna do, we can't just rush in there"

They spent the next hour or so planning their battle strategies and it was decided that Ash, Rick and Ho-oh would look for the leader while the others fought off the other Dark Legendaries.

It was now 11:45pm/am. They flying Pokémon allowed Ash and Rick to climb on before they headed for Red Rock Isle.

Ash gripped the sword tightly by the hilt and sighed. "Well, here we go" He said as the Pokémon swooped down towards Red Rock Isle that lay below.

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To Be Continued

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Ok, here's chappy 3, nothing special. Coming up is Ash and Ho-oh's meeting the Dark Legendary Leader MUHAHA! *clears throat* Heehee, hyper is me. Yup yup. Must work on part 4! Heehee, see ya,  
Bay Bay!  
Bayleef  
adorable_chickorita@hotmail.com


	4. The Flame Extinguished

** Chapter Four - The Flame Extinguished **

Ash stood on a hill, in the distance the Dark Legendary HQ was visible from the flames of the burning flames that were kept lit all around the island, though there was no wood that was used. They seemed to burn without help.

Rick and Pikachu stood beside Ash, the Legendary Pokémon Lugia, Zapdos, Articuno, Moltres and Ho-oh stood behind them, looking at the dark castle-like HQ. Ash had a sword in its sheath on his belt, his Pokéballs around it.

He looked back at Rick who nodded. He looked at the legendaries who nodded as well and spread their wings, taking flight into the black sky, were they were no longer visible. Ash jumped down and slid down the side of the steep hill, he was followed by Rick and Pikachu.

When they reached the bottom, Ash noticed something run behind a rock. He grabbed the hilt of the sword and stepped forward. He looked around the back of the rock and received a blow to the face. He fell back and put his hand on his face, groaning.

"Oh I'm so sorry!"

Ash looked up and saw a girl in front of him. He knew her straight away. "Misty?!"

"Ash?!" Misty pulled his hand away from his face. "Oh my god, it is you!"

"What are you doing here?" Ash asked, standing up.

"Hey, the world's in danger and unlike my sisters I don't plan to hide out in the Gym until it's over" She said. "What about you? Saving the world again?"

"Trying too" Ash said. Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder. "Did Brock come too?"

"No. My sisters asked him to stay and protect them. Obviously he didn't refuse" Misty rolled her eyes.

Rick came up behind Ash. "Hey Ash, isn't that your girlfriend?"

Ash and Misty both blushed.

"She is not!" Ash said.

Pikachu and Rick grinned.

"Look Misty, we gotta go, Ho-oh and the others are waiting for our signal to attack" Ash explained.

"Well your not going without me" Misty smiled.

Ash smiled. "Ok, let's go!" He ran forward, Misty, Rick and Pikachu behind him. He reached an area well hidden from view but still close to the HQ. Ash looked back and whispered. "When I give the word, run for the entrance to the HQ. Don't stop until you get inside, got it?" The others nodded and he turned back to the castle. He closed his eyes and concentrated. _"Show time Ho-oh"_

High above them, Ho-oh got Ash's message and turned to the others, who were only visible thanks to Moltres' flaming wings, and nodded. They all let out a war cry and dove towards the HQ.

The huge metal doors of the HQ opened and the Dark Legendaries came out. Dark Lugia, Dark Moltres, Dark Zapdos and Dark Articuno. The Ho-oh had stayed inside, as Ash had expected.

The Dark Legendaries took flight and soon the sky was filled with they cries of the Legendary Pokémon fought, striking out with their talons. Moltres against Dark Moltres, Dark Lugia against Lugia, Dark Zapdos against Zapdos and Articuno against Dark Articuno.

Ash, Rick, Pikachu and Misty ran towards the doors, dodging attacks here and there that had been reflected away.

Ho-oh swooped past the battle and in the doors after the others. When Ash and the others were in it used Whirlwind to close the huge doors and then flamethrower to melt the together. _"Now the other Dark Legendaries can't get in"_

Ash sighed and looked down the dark corridor. As he slowly began to walk he had a bad feeling about what he was doing. He ignored it and walked on.

The reached the end of the corridor and came across a maze.

"Oh great" Misty moaned. "Now what?"

"Relax Mist" Ash said. "I know my way around"

"Ya right, bet you don't" Misty said.

"I do too" said Ash.

"Do not"

"Do too"

"Do not"

"Hey!" Rick pulled the two apart. "Come on, we got a Pokémon to beat" He let go. "And besides I think Ash does know the way"

Ash grinned and stuck his tongue out at Misty before continuing into the maze. He was right, he did know the way. He must have learned it from the dream he had or something.

After about twenty minutes, they came too another corridor. This one was more brightly lit than the others and had a large wooden door at the end.

"That must be were the Ho-oh is" Rick said.

Ash walked forward up to the door, Ho-oh walked up beside him. With one little poke of it's beak, Ho-oh pushed the door open enough for it to look in.

Ash looked in as well and saw that the Dark Ho-oh was sleeping in the center of the room. The room was huge, big enough to fit a dozen Steelix at the very least. Ash looked at the sword by his side.

Ho-oh looked down at him. _"This is your chance, get it while it's asleep"_ It advised.

Ash looked up at Ho-oh and than back at the Dark Ho-oh. He withdrew the sword and took a step forward. He didn't know if he could do it. Could he really kill a Pokémon?

Rick, Pikachu and Misty walked up behind him and he looked back. "You guys stay near the door.....in case something happens" He took a deep breath and walked forward. He walked up and stood in front of the sleeping Ho-oh. He raised the sword, the point facing the centre of the Ho-oh's head. He paused. It just looked like a black version of the normal Ho-oh. He closed his eyes and sighed, lowering the sword. He just didn't have it in him, he couldn't kill a Pokémon.

The sleeping Ho-oh' eyes shot open, glowing a bright red.

"Ash look out!" Misty called.

"Huh?" Ash opened his eyes just in time to see Dark Ho-oh lunge forward and chomp it's beak onto him, the tip of it's sharp beak driving into his shoulder.

Ho-oh lunged forward to help but Dark Ho-oh flew up and grabbed Ho-oh by the neck with it's claw, holding it tightly.

Ash froze, terror shown on his face as the Dark Ho-oh's large red eyes glared at him and began to glow. He yelled as he felt a pain like hundreds of knives shoot through him. He could hear Ho-oh crying out in pain too.

Misty gasped and fumbled around for a Pokéball, any Pokémon that may be able to help. She couldn't stand the yelling, she had to help Ash.

And then it stopped.

Dark Ho-oh's eyes stopped glowing and it tossed Ash's limp body aside, along with Ho-oh. It spread it's wings and flew upwards, a door opening in the roof as it flew out.

Rick, Misty and Pikachu ran over to Ash's side and knelt beside him.

"Ash? Ash come on, say something" Misty said, still shocked at what she had just seen.

Rick picked up Ash's wrist and looked for a pulse. There wasn't one, and Ash wasn't breathing.

Ash was dead.

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To Be Continued

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Well, how was that? It was a little disturbing for me to write that part. Well guess there's not mush else to say except please review. See ya in the next chappy,  
Bay Bay!  
Bayleef  
adorable_chickorita@hotmail.com


	5. When Anger Takes Over

** Chapter Five - When Anger Takes Over**

** Pikachu shook his head in disbelief, as he looked at his lifeless trainer. "Pikapi...?" He walked forward and shakily put his paw on Ash's arm, shaking him slightly. There was no reaction. Pikachu's eyes filled with tears. "Pi-Pika-p-pi" He stuttered through tears of sorrow.**

Misty had her hands over her face and was crying loudly. She picked up Pikachu and hugged him tightly, crying into his fur.

Pikachu returned the hug and continued to cry heavily.

Rick was frozen with shock. It took him a while to actually believe that his son was dead. He looked at the ground and clenched his hand into a fist. He stood up, fists shaking with anger. He bent over and picked up the sword that was still in Ash's hand, held it up in front of him and looked at it. "If they saw this is the only thing that can destroy that monster...so be it" He took out a Pokéball and choose Charizard. He ordered it to take him outside through the door that was still open in the roof. It obayed and they flew up towards the exit.

Just at that moment, the doors began to close.

Charizard narrowed it's eyes and flapped it's wings harder, trying to get out before it closed. It got through just in time at the door narrowly missed shuting on it's tail. Charizard flew down and landed at the front door.

Rick jumped off and looked up to see Articuno defeat Dark Articuno. All the Dark Legandaries lay lifeless on the land beofore him, but Dark Ho-oh was missing. He looked up and saw Ho-oh shoot a powerful red and black beam right at the legandaries. They fainted instintly and Ho-oh let out a victory cry. Rick had never felt hate towards anything, but he wanted this monster to die and pay for what it had done.

As if reading his thoughts, the blade of the sword in his hands began to glow a bright red, along with the red jewel in the hilt. He looked at it and narrowed his eyes. He turned back to Charizard, took out his Pokéball and said, "I want to do this alone" Charizard was reluctant to return but Rick got it into it's Pokéball, then he turned to Dark Ho-oh.

Dark Ho-oh noticed something out of the corner of it's eye and looked over. It saw the human that was accompanied by the Chosen One. It grinned and floated down towards him, gliding only a few feet off the ground. _"What are you doing here human? Do you want to suffer the same faith as the boy?"_

"You are going to pay for what you did to Ash" Rick said as he raised the sword.

Ho-oh grinned even more evilly. _"I'll take that as a yes"_ It dove at Rick and slammed him back with it's beak.

Rick regained his balance and held up the sword. He ran forward and slashed the Dark Ho-oh's stomach as it made an attempt to fly back.

Dark Ho-oh cringed. The sword did more damage than it expected. Blood seeped from the wound and Dark Ho-oh looked at the sword. _"That sword.....but it can't be! I killed the one that can awaken it's power!"_

"You don't think the world's faith is always in Ash's hands do you?" Rick asked. "I didn't know it till a few minutes ago but I was the one that was supposed to have this sword. I was the one who chose Ash to have Ho-oh's powers, but Mew was the one the one that chose me as the bearer of this sword" Mew had been the one in charge of chosing a human to awaken the power of the Solis Sword.

Dark Ho-oh shook it's head. _"It doesn't matter, I can still defeat you, I have more power than ever now"_ It flew up and shot a dark Flamethrower at Rick.

Rick raised the sword and a barrier formed around him. When the flamethrower stopped he ran forward and drove the sword into its side and sliced out, cutting a hole in Dark Ho-oh's side.

Dark Ho-oh screeched in pain and flew backwards, shoting a fireblast.

Rick was hit by the Fire Blast, but he refused to give up. Then he had an idea.

Dark Ho-oh looked forward to attack again but couldn't see Rick anywere. It looked around wildly before it felt a pain shoot through it's back as Rick came from behind and stabbed it, driving the blade in as far as it would go. Ho-oh fell on it's stomach and Rick was tossed forward, pulling the sword out as he was tossed forward.

Rick landed on the ground on his back and skidded to a stop. He groaned and got up onto his hands and kness and looked up at Dark Ho-oh.

Dark Ho-oh was breathing heavily and couldn't move.

Rick got up and walked forward with the sword, blood dripping on the ground as he walked. He stopped in front of Dark Ho-oh's face and raised the Solis Sword, ready to give the final blow.

The Ho-oh looked up at him, _"No...don't do it..."_

Rick paused for a second. He wondered if he was doing the right thing. He shook his head as the memory of Ash came back. "Say goodbye..." He drove the sword down. There was a sickening crake as the blade met Dark Ho-oh's skull and another as it broke through it's jaw and drove into the ground.

Dark Ho-oh screeched but fell silent quickly. This angered Rick slightly. He wanted it to suffer for what it had done.

He looked up at the sky. The sky! Why was it still black? He'd killed the Dark Ho-oh.

He looked back at Dark Ho-oh and it's glowing red eyes shot open.

-----------

To Be Continued

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MUHAHA! It's not over yet *grins* Whats with me? Why do I drag stories out? Coz I get another idea! Heehee, this is fun, I should make more sequels, what do you guys think? Anyway, hope I'll see ya in the next chappy, thanks for the reviews and I'd love a few more,  
Bay Bay!  
Bayleef  
adorable_chickorita@hotmail.com


	6. Confusion

** Chapter Five - Confusion**

** Rick jumped back. How did Dark Ho-oh survive?**

The Ho-oh rose up, Solis Sword still sticking out of it's head. _"You think I can be defeated that easily? Well think again"_ There was a glow and the Solis Sword shot up and hovered above Dark Ho-oh. Dark Ho-oh glowed red and soon was fully healed. It looked up and grinned at the sword, then flew up and grabbed the sword in it's beak.

Rick shook his head. "No, don't!"

Too late, Dark Ho-oh snapped the Solis Sword in two, causing half the blade to fall to the ground. Dark Ho-oh tossed the other half of the blade, along with the hilt, to the ground also.

Rick looked at the sword. It was his only weapon against Gark Ho-oh and now it was broken. How was he to defeat it now? He looked at the six Pokéballs on his belt. There was no way his Pokémon could take on a Legandary Pokémon, no matter how well trained they were.

Rick heard an explosion behind him and looked back.

The door into the HQ had been blown open and from the dust, Pikachu came into view, followed by Bayleef, Bulbasaur, Totodile, Cyndaquil and Noctowl. Behind then Misty walked out. They all walked over and stood beside Rick, looking up at the Ho-oh, wo was looking at them strangely.

Rick put his arm infront of Misty. "It's to dangerous"

"I'm not gonna let it get away, not after what it did to Ash" Misty said. She threw three Pokéballs to reveal Staryu, Corsola and Poliwhirl.

Pikachu's cheeks sparked and the other Pokémon stood beside him in a line. They wanted to battle too.

Before anyone could do anything, there was a bright glow. Rick looked to see it was coming from the Solis Sword. From the broken end of each half, a white mist came out. The mist floated into the sky and formed the shape of a Ho-oh. There was a blinding flash and a White Ho-oh appeared, and erie glow came from it's feathers. It began to glow again and soon it was nothing but a large glowing bird with now face or anything. It split in half and the two beams shot around.

Rick had to close his eyes as the blindling light shot past him. When he opened them again they were gone. "What was that about?"

Dark Ho-oh looked around for the beams of light as well but shrugged when it couldn't see it. It turned it's attention back to Ric, Misty and the Pokémon. "Time to battle"

Pikachu narrowed it's eyes and got down on all fours.

Rick looked at the Pokémon and nodded. He took out six Pokéballs and realeased a Charizard, an Umbreon, a Raichu, a Kingdra, a Scizor and a Venasaur. He ordered all his Pokémon to line up beside Ash's Pokémon and they obayed.

Misty's Pokémon lines up beside Rick's and prepared to attack.

Rick pointed at Dark Ho-oh. "Go get it!"

Pikachu and Raichu shot off two Thunderbolt attacks, Bulbasaur, Venasaur and Bayleef sent a Razor leaf attack, Poliwhirl, Staryu and Corsola used Water gun while Totodile and Kingdra used Hydro Pump, Charizard and Cyndaquil used Flamethrower, Umbreon used Night Shade, Scizor used Slash and Noctowl used Confusion.

Dark Ho-oh grinned and brought up a barrier that knocked all the attacks back at the others in one huge blast.

The Pokémon didn't have time to move. The attack hit them head on and they fell to the ground, weakened.

Misty and Rick ran over to cheek on the Pokémon. The Pokémon weren't knocked out, they were just stunned at being hit by all that power at once.

Dark Ho-oh looked at them. _"You humans and Pokémon have been thorns in my wing long enough"_ It reared up and prepared to used a Fire Blast, one powerful enough to kill them all.

Rick would have moved, but his stubborn attitude and the fact that he didn't want to leave the Pokémon made him stay were he was.

Dark Ho-oh was about to realease it's Fire Blast when it recieved a jolt of pain in the stomach. It stopped the attack and looked down to see Pikachu standing again, who had just used a thunderbolt. _"You dare attack me? You will be the first to go"_ Dark Ho-oh used a Psychic and lifted the Pikachu off the ground.

Pikachu strugled but there was no way he could move.

Dark Ho-oh flew a little farther away from the others and slammed Pikachu into the ground, paralising him. _"You'll make a tasty snack"_ Dark Ho-oh flew forward, beak open, ready to grabbed the small Pokémon.

Pikachu watched, terrified, as the giant bird closed in on him. But just as Dark Ho-oh was a few feet away from him, he felt as though someone had grabbed him, someone who was moving as if they knew agility. He felt his tail hit the side of Dark Ho-oh's beak as he was pulled out of the way just in time. Everything around him was a blur as whatever had caught him didn't stop. There was a sudden jolt as Pikachu noticed they came to a hault. He sighed and looked up at what had saved him. Pikachu's eyes went wide. "Pikapi!?"

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To Be Continued

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Confused? Heehee, the name of the chappy did warn ya. Don't worry, it'll all be explained the next chappy. Ok, I know the chappy's are shorter but that's coz I've come more concious about how I split the story. Well I don't have much else to say except sorry if I'm draggin' this out ^_^;; See ya in the next chappy!  
Bay Bay!  
Bayleef  
adorable_chickorita@hotmail.com


	7. A New Task

** Chapter Seven - A New Task**

** Pikachu looked up at his trainer, who only a few minutes before, had no life in him whatsoever. Now his trainer looked a little beat up, he was a little pale and his shoulder was still bleeding, but he was alive. "Pikapi?"**

Ash looked down at Pikachu. "Hey Pikachu" He didn't even make an attempt to smile but he stood up and placed Pikachu on his unbleeding shoulder. He heard someone walk up behind him and turned to see Rick and Misty.

"Ash?" Misty said. "I thought you were..."

"I was" Ash's voice was serious. A brightly coloured bird flew out from the exit of the building and landed beside him. Ash looked at Ho-oh. "So was Ho-oh"

Misty looked at Ho-oh too, "But then how...?"

_"By breaking the Solis Sword, Dark Ho-oh released it's power"_ Ho-oh explain. _"The power of the sword was able to bring us back to life. It came in the form of a White Ho-oh"_

"But the power's not going to last long" Ash continued. "In an hour, if we haven't defeated Dark Ho-oh in and hour and gotton our powers back, Ho-oh and I will be gone for good, even if you do defeat Dark Ho-oh. After our life force has run out it'll be too late"

"Well then what are we waiting for?" Rick said. "Let's go kick some Dark Ho-oh butt"

Ash nodded and looked at Pikachu and the other Pokémon, who were now standing and looking at their trainer. Misty's and Rick's Pokémon were there too. "Let's win this battle guys"

The Pokémon nodded and turned to Dark Ho-oh again. They all powered up their attacks at shot them forward again, this time they were joined by Ho-oh's flamethrower.

Dark Ho-oh crouched over and leapt into the air at high speed, dodging all the attacks. It grinned and shot a fire blast at them.

Ho-oh flew in front of the others and used a protected attack, causing the attacks to fizzle out.

"I don't get it" Rick said. "How did that Dark Ho-oh survive after receiving a sword to the head?"

_"Because it's head isn't were it's life-force is"_ Ho-oh explained. _"If you want to defeat it, you have to get it in the heart"_

"Easier said than done" Rick frowned. "Dark Ho-oh's too fast and too strong to stay in one place long enough, and the Solis Sword is gone. There's no way to stop it"

"Not necessarily" Ash said as he watched Dark Ho-oh dodge another Hydro Pump used by Kingdra.

"What do you mean?" Misty asked.

"Well..." Ash said. "Legendary or not, it's still a living thing, and a Flying type. If we could get Pikachu and Raichu to give it a big enough blast then it should go down like Pokémon should"

"That could work, but it's still to fast for Pikachu or Raichu to hit" Rick said returning his fainted Scizor after it was hit by a fire blast.

Ash began to think hard. If Pikachu and Raichu could hit it with their Thunder attacks it would settle Dark Ho-oh permanently, but Thunder attack had bad enough accuracy without the super fast Ho-oh. Then he had an idea. He turned to Misty. "Misty, get Poliwhirl to use rain dance, that'll give Thunder a guarantied hit"

Misty nodded and turned to Poliwhirl. "Poliwhirl, use your most powerful Rain Dance attack"

As Poliwhirl began it's rain dance Ash turned to Rick. "Get Raichu to power up for a Thunder attack and return the others. Pikachu" Ash turned to the Pokémon beside him. "Power up for Thunder" Next he turned to Ho-oh. "Get ready to us Protect when Pikachu and Raichu use Thunder"

Everyone followed their orders and soon, even though there wasn't a cloud in the black sky, it began to rain heavily and sparks were flying around Pikachu and Raichu.

Dark Ho-oh groaned at the rain, wondering what they were playing at. It reared up and shot a Psychic at them.

Umbreon leapt forward and took the hit, which didn't affect it in the slightest.

Pikachu and Raichu's cheeks glowed that signalled they were finished powering up.

"Everyone return" Rick returned all his Pokémon apart from Raichu while Ash did the same.

After Misty had returned her Pokémon Ho-oh flew over to them and landed in front of them. It nodded to Pikachu and Raichu.

Dark Ho-oh looked at them oddly and then it's eyes widened. It looks at it's wings, which were now soaking from the rain. It looked up and narrowed it's eyes. It was like a lightning rod since water conducts electricity. It spread it's wings and flew up, hoping desperately that it would help dry off, but the rain was still falling and being soaked was making it harder to fly.

"Go!" Ash and Rick said in unison.

"Pika..."

"Rai..."

"CHU!"

There was a loud rumbling as Pikachu and Raichu shot a Thunder attack towards Dark Ho-oh.

Ho-oh used Protect as Pikachu and Raichu used Thunder to Protect itself, Ash, Rick and Misty from the Thunder, which would have hit them because the Rain Dance had soaked them to the skin as well as Dark Ho-oh.

Dark Ho-oh let out a screech of pain as it was struck by the double Thunder. After a minute or two the electric attack stopped and Dark Ho-oh plummeted towards the ground, landing with a thud.

Pikachu and Raichu slumped to the ground, almost completely out of energy.

Ho-oh stopped the Protect attack and let Ash and Rick past to get their Pokémon.

Ash and Rick picked up their electric Pokémon an patted them. "Good job guys" Ash said and looked over at Dark Ho-oh, holding Pikachu in his arms.

Dark Ho-oh lay on the ground, twitching slightly from a few electric shocks that came a little late to it. It opened it's eyes weakly and growled. _"You may have defeated me, but I refuse to let you have the sun back"_ A red glow came from the centre of it's forehead and a red glass orb, very much like the fire of the three treasures back at the Orange Islands except with a black centre, appeared in front of it.

Another glow came from the lifeless forms of the other Dark Legendaries and four more red orbs appeared and floated up into the air. They joined together and then shot off in different directions.

"What are you doing?" Misty said, walking up beside Ash and Rick.

_"Simply insuring that you never see the sun again..."_ Before it could say anything else, it's life ran out. It began to glow and two red beams shot out and struck Ash and Ho-oh, knocking them both back.

Pikachu stood up and jumped off it's trainers stomach and stood beside him. "Pikapi?"

Ash sat up and held his head. "I'm alright" He looked over at Pikachu and smiled.

Ho-oh pushed itself up. _"We have no time to rest, what has Dark Ho-oh done with the sun?"_ It looked up at the sky which was still pitch black.

"Those orbs...." Ash stood up. "Those orbs must have had something to do with it"

Rick stepped forward. "It's power is still blocking out the sun. Even though it's dead, Dark Ho-oh took it's power and the power of the other Dark Legendaries and somehow kept it blocking out the sun"

"So what do we do?" Misty asked.

Ho-oh ruffled it's feathers as it thought, then it spoke up. _"Those orbs that Dark Ho-oh sent off, they went in different directions, split up across the world. Maybe if we find them it'll remove the black veil that covers the world"_

"Maybe your right" Ash sighed.

"Maybe we should get back to Seafoam Pokémon Center and rest up, then we can plan from there" Rick suggested.

"Good idea" Ash said, glad that maybe he could get some rest.

Before they could leave though, Ash and Ho-oh went around to help the legandaries regain consciousness and heal them up.

Ash yawned as he helped heal Articuno, who was the last to be healed. "Can we go now?"

Ho-oh nodded and bent down so Ash and Pikachu could get on. Misty rode on Articuno and Rick rode on Lugia. The Legendary Pokémon took off towards Seafoam.

----------- 

Back as the Pokémon Center Ash had just handed in his, Misty's and Rick's Pokémon for healing. Ho-oh had flown up to the deserted cave and the others had headed back to the Orange Islands.

"Ash" Rick called. "I think you better take a look at this"

Ash walked over to were Rick was. He was watching the television and the News was on. They were on the top story. A large black and scarily familiar building was shown on the screen. The reporter began to talk.

_"I'm outside Goldenrod City were mysterious buildings have suddenly appeared all across the world. No one knows how they got there but people claim that they appeared when a blinding red light hit the ground. Were the light struck there was an explosion and then, those building's were there. No one is sure what to believe. More on this story on the Ten O' Clock News"_

The channel changed at went back to the news room were they began to talk more about the sun block out and that no one had an explanation for it yet.

Ash looked at Rick. "You thinkin' what I'm thinkin'?"

Rick nodded. "Guess the next stop is Goldenrod City, though we need to find out were the other buildings are"

Ash nodded and looked out the window. "I have a feeling that place is gonna be harder to get through than it looks" He sighed. Looks like they were to get ready for another adventure.

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The End

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Heehee, see it? See it? There's gonna be another sequel! MUHAHA! I'm annoying ain't I? lol, sorry, I'm hyper right now. Anyway, thanks for all the reviews, I really appreciate 'em ^_^ See ya guys!  
Bay Bay!  
Bayleef  
adorable_chickorita@hotmail.com


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